Twin Capital Management Inc. Sells 7,473 Shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

Twin Capital Management Inc. decreased its position in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) by 10.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 62,931 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,473 shares during the period. Twin Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Kroger were worth $2,877,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Kroger by 4,810.7% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 567,829 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,955,000 after acquiring an additional 556,266 shares in the last quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. lifted its stake in Kroger by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 284,094 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,715,000 after acquiring an additional 11,707 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank lifted its stake in Kroger by 49.3% in the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 115,411 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,165,000 after acquiring an additional 38,119 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in Kroger by 239.9% in the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 168,019 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,519,000 after acquiring an additional 118,581 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Kroger by 12.5% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 156,275 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,143,000 after purchasing an additional 17,380 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Trading Down 0.0 %

Kroger stock traded down $0.02 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $55.24. The stock had a trading volume of 1,208,875 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,942,404. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The stock has a market cap of $39.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.48. The Kroger Co. has a one year low of $42.10 and a one year high of $58.34. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $52.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $47.69.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The company reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $37.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $37.07 billion. Kroger had a return on equity of 31.44% and a net margin of 1.44%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.99 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that The Kroger Co. will post 4.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.10%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.19%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on KR. Telsey Advisory Group upped their price objective on Kroger from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. BNP Paribas reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $48.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Guggenheim upped their price objective on Kroger from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Kroger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $58.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Kroger from $63.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $55.17.

Kroger Company Profile

The Kroger Co operates as a food and drug retailer in the United States. The company operates combination food and drug stores, multi-department stores, marketplace stores, and price impact warehouses. Its combination food and drug stores offer natural food and organic sections, pharmacies, general merchandise, pet centers, fresh seafood, and organic produce; and multi-department stores provide apparel, home fashion and furnishings, outdoor living, electronics, automotive products, and toys.